Cercis Murat Konağı

The Mystic Tastes of East: I should confess that I approached with prejudice the news that Cercis Murat Konağı, the unforgettable restaurant in which we had dined during our visit to Mardin a few years ago, had opened a branch in Istanbul. The reason I enjoyed the restaurant in Mardin was not only the delicious food but the beauty of the site, its decoration and the stunning view overlooking the Syrian plain. Would I feel the same in Istanbul without those accompanying factors?

We were seated and after cleaning our hands with warm damp white towels, the waiter brought the appetizer (meze) tray with 10 kinds of mezes displayed in copper ladles (traditional ayran spoons). The appearance was incredibly beautiful and the mezes in ladles were each as delicious as the other. The içli köfte – stuffed meatball - which we usually eat fried in Istanbul was boiled and yummy!

We ordered double kaburga dolması (stuffed lamb rib) and we could not finish it although three of us ate and we had the remainder packaged to go. It was the best kaburga dolması I have eaten recently, it was not fatty and the meat was soft and inodorous.

We had one portion of Katmer (thin, crisp, flaky pastry desert, filled with cream and dusted with buttered ground pistachio) divided into three. It was mouth-watering.

Then came the real beauties. The waiters, with copper bowl and pitchers, poured refreshing rose water over our fingers and offered us rose-flavored Turkish delight and Kiliçe (a kind of cookie peculiar to Mardin). An unusual kind of lemon syrup served in glass goblets followed. The syrup has pepper in it and it was neither sweet nor sour, meaning it was the proper consistency! Although a waiter offered us Mırra (a bitter, dark and syrupy coffee of the Southeast) we preferred to drink Turkish coffee. Our coffees were served on velvet and silver covered stands and the coffee cups were in zarf (an ornamental metal cup-shaped holder for hot coffee cups).

When we finally left the restaurant I found myself thinking that the Mardin scenery was not a must.

Cercis Murat Konağı
Garden Park Barbaros Mahallesi
Lale Sokak No: 1 Batı Ataşehir
İstanbul
(216) 688 88 47
www.cercismurat.com

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